Enterprise Land hires real estate funds expert John Forbes as senior adviser

Enterprise Land, a UK and European real estate investment company founded by real estate investment management veteran Andrew Thornton, has appointed real estate funds expert, John Forbes, as a senior adviser.

Forbes is an authority on the structure, operation and governance of real estate funds and will support Enterprise Land’s ambition to become a significant real estate investment management business. He has advised a number of fund managers and investors on open and closed-ended funds since establishing John Forbes Consulting LLP in 2013. His appointment continues his longstanding relationship with Andrew Thornton – his first client was Internos Global Investors, a European real estate investment manager which was co-founded by Thornton and sold to Principal Financial Group in 2018.

In addition to his consulting work, Forbes is non-executive chair of the Urban Splash Residential Fund and a non-executive director of the Patrizia Hanover fund. From 2014 to 2022 he was independent chair of the Supervisory Board of the UBS Triton property fund. Prior to setting up John Forbes Consulting LLP, he spent 26 years at PwC, where he was a partner and was the firm’s international Subject Matter Expert for real estate funds.

His appointment at Enterprise Land follows those last month of Dominic von Felten as managing director and member of the management committee, Olivia Thornton as director of risk management and Charles Stevens as portfolio manager.

Enterprise Land was launched in September by Andrew Thornton to bring together and work with companies specialising in the four factors of production, enterprise, land, labour and capital, to offer compelling, differentiated, European investment solutions. With offices in London and Zurich, Enterprise Land will initially focus on investment and development in the student accommodation, data centre and logistics sectors, which are benefitting from tailwinds and offer mid-teen development returns.

John Forbes, senior adviser to Enterprise Land, said:

“Internos was my first client when I left PwC in 2013, and I continued to advise them through the successful sale to Principal. I am, therefore, delighted to be part of the next step as a senior advisor to Andrew and his team at Enterprise Land”.

Andrew Thornton, founder and chief executive of Enterprise Land, said:

“I am thrilled to have John as part of the team. There is no one who understands real estate funds better than him, and he will play a key part in our growth strategy”.